CBC Manitoba Adds Steinbach Bureau

 

Between CBC Manitoba Radio One and CBC Manitoba Television, CBC has a fairly large presence in the news department. Aside from Brandon, CBC Manitoba has a fairly light presence in covering anything outside the perimeter. The radio unit does make regular attempts to send the team to various parts of the province. And the TV unit does cover stories outside Winnipeg but the capital remains the biggest source of news material.

Brandon has had a news reporter based in the city for many years. They have needed one since their affiliation with CKX television in Brandon ended. That brought the station to an end in 2009 and CBC now had no real coverage for the second largest city in the province. A number of correspondents have worked the Brandon bureau. Their assignment is the city of Brandon and rural issues.

For decades some of the biggest advertisers on CBC Manitoba's evening news was ag related commercials. It is less so now. While CBC Radio One's Winnipeg broadcast is number 1 in the ratings, that is not true of the CBC local TV news in recent decades. It was once the top newscast but changes at the anchor desk and consistency at the other stations saw CBC slip to second and then third.

In today's market of cord cutting, as people sign on for streaming services and the like, the audience for local news goes down or appears to be on the decline. Certainly, how media reaches their audiences has changed greatly. When Bell dropped sports radio, it opened up several podcasts for former broadcasters and new entries in this niche. It is fairly shocking how pretty much all the local stations have dropped their sports reporting.

It certainly isn't written in stone that this is the best approach. Looking south to Fargo, North Dakota, we see WDAY use digital options to create a sports channel offshoot of their ABC slot dedicated to high school and university sports in the state. No media comes close to this coverage in Manitoba and North Dakota has a smaller population.

The overall CBC English and French service receives a lot of federal money. However, compared to other industrialized countries, it is below almost everyone except the U.S. The American have even cut their support more but have left the tax credits in place for people who donate to PBS and NPR.

In the last election the Conservatives said they would end CBC funding while the Liberals said they would increase spending. Since the election, Prime Minister Carney has ordered CBC to look for savings but kept the increase promised in election. All government departments have been asked to make cuts so the CBC is among those departments and Crowns. At the billion mark, there is a lot of money in the system. CBC Radio and Radio Canada, the French service punch above their weight class. They are both popular services and in the case of radio, have no advertising taken away from private broadcasters. CBC North can be regarded as an essential service given the lack of any alternatives.

The CBC English TV, with the goal of trying to serve a wider audience, the network decided to hire 30 more journalists in 22 communities. The Prairies would see the most of any region with nine communities having reporters. For Manitoba, the Steinbach/Hanover community the allocation is to be two reporters. The first one has already been hired. The second one will be soon. This will increase the coverage from 48 to 66 stations and bureaus across the country. It is long overdue.

CBC Manitoba is often accused of perimeter-itis. While it has reporters who know the outside of the city, it is not as often reflected in news. It isn't in their remit if they are reporting on city hall or the legislature. It remains to be seen how the new reporters will be utilized from Brandon to Steinbach. The Brandon reporter in recent years seems to have one digital story a week and regular contributions to the broadcast through the week. 

The CBC Manitoba evening news has a new set. The one old overlooked Portage at Spence. 

Brittany Greenslade took over as full time anchor after a period of rotating anchors when Janet Stewart left to take over the noon radio call in show for a year. While there isn't anything wrong with the new set per se, it really doesn't allow for much interaction between anchor and guest. Compared to APTN down the street, it isn't a very active set. National CBC programs have far more interesting sets for discussions which largely seem absent on CBC Manitoba.

I mention the news desk set because with two bureaus outside Winnipeg, it would be interesting at times if the Brandon or Steinbach correspondent could have a segment where they interact with the anchor. There have been occasions when correspondents have interacted in analysis segments. The Kives/Kavanaugh explainers were always interesting. Most of the interactions are now between weather anchor and new anchor. No stations carry sports reporters anymore. It is disappointing because nothing gets reported in Manitoba on high school and university sports. It isn't what happens south of the border. Nor does it happen in Britain. The BBC is full of sports coverage. That will be a discussion for another day.

The most important thing from the posting outside of Winnipeg will be new perspectives from those areas. And so it will go with all of the new bureaus. Will it magically make CBC television news number 1 in the markets it serves? No. There still needs to be a review of what CBC offers Canada. The future for CBC would appear to lie in streaming and they have moved local broadcasts to that format but so far it doesn't seem to coordinated enough to extend this service world-wide like BritBox or Acorn does with British programming.

I expect we will see more reporting from the bureaus across Canada in the fall as they are fully staffed. Given how many parts of the country have lost newspapers and radio stations, it may be the first full time reporter for those communities.

Journalism Support Manitoba 2025

It seems ironic that the Manitoba government would advertise meetings on journalism in the province by buying advertising on social media owned outside of Canada. Not surprisingly, the first meeting had no one attending because they didn't hear. None of the social media is based in Manitoba nor does the ad money spent there stay in Canada. That isn't to say that all aspects of social media are bad but it is often a dumpster fire.  The artificial intelligence is now allowing for racist and abusive material that even freedom if speech supporters must feel queasy about. The outright propaganda from outside the country is very alarming.

Governments have legitimate reasons to advertise. For example, the changes to Winnipeg Transit are being advertised on social media. It is unclear whether this is just a general information release or paid advertising. Certainly the Recycle Everywhere ads are paid advertising when they appear on social media. In fairness though, Recycle Everywhere ads appear to spread out among local media.

Ontario has several initiatives in place to support local journalism and media. It is usually redirecting money from social media that is now owned in Canada to media that actually is owned and covers regional content. It is the money the government already spends but now being spent in Canada. It is not a subsidy.

Freedom of speech has never been to allow crying fire in a crowded movie theatre. In recent weeks the content on TikTok on politics has been awful. I long deleted my Twitter account even before Elon Musk bought it. Even then it was becoming a bit repetitive and less reliable. And sometimes fairly reactionary. I'll admit to sometimes getting into it online but I don't recall ever being outright cruel or piling on someone. I continue to blog and generally the response time for people can be months and years later. I'm okay with that.

It used to be newspapers had a lifespan of a day or two, a week tops before they went in the bottom of the birdcage or out with recycling. However, digitally, a story could be read weeks, months and years later. One doesn't have to wait for it to be available at the public library. But what happens when you local newspaper, radio station, TV station, magazine or other media shuts down with nothing to replace it? Even the archived material on websites aside from the waybackmachine disappear. 

Communities, like Brandon, that continue to grow in Manitoba have lost their TV station, weekly newspaper and lack talk radio. They still have a daily newspaper that has Manitoba ownership. Sadly, many Manitoba communities have lost their only local sources of news, weather and sports. And the only archive of it might be in the local museum if it is in print. 

There is a local news initiative funded by the federal government to assist in salaries for specific regional coverage. Both the Winnipeg Sun and Free Press get this funding.  There is also funding coming from social media giants for content they use from local media. The government has had to push for this because these large companies have been using content without paying for it. 

There are some that are opposed to any government involvement but government has posted ads and notifications in media for decades with no editorial interference. Those have dried up as has private advertising. Large foreign social media hoovers up all that revenue. 

There is a lot the Manitoba government can do to help and much of it is what they did before social media and that is advertise in local radio, TV, newspapers and podcasters. Fortunately, for Manitoba there is a lot of Manitoba-owned media to support. This isn't true all over Canada. The national Post Media group which includes newspapers all over the country is American-owned. Our Winnipeg Sun is Manitoba owned but still gets a lot of content from the American-owned National Post. Something to keep in mind when the Sun asks for CBC to be defunded just so private media owned by Americans can be more profitable and send those profits south of the border.

The ties to the Republican party in the ownership group that has majority shares in the Postmedia group pushes for ever more conservative reporting. And this is the group that pushes for the end of the CBC and is generally closing their own newsrooms each year.

Thankfully, Manitoba still has a locally owned media that the province of Manitoba can support.

Here are the main ways it can support local:

1. Set a fixed amount of government and Crown corporation advertising money that is already being spent on Manitoba-based media. Makes that list of approved media available to to municipalities and private interests.

2. Create a tax credit for those approved media for anyone buying advertising on various platforms. Not sure what sort of cap should be on that spending if any.

3. Supports for changing media to a non-profit where the absence of support may result in the closure of that media. In fact, make it possible to create different types of ownership for media.

The failure to do anything could see more closures. Thompson, for example, has lot both its print papers. Any of the above supports might have helped those paper survive.

Politicians might have a love hate relationship with media but if the local media completely disappears, it can result no local coverage of what is important to the area that supports local business, news, weather and sports. The fact that an all party committee is looking for answers shows that this isn't just a business decision anymore. It is a matter of concern when an area just gets abandoned in favour of companies that are not even Canadian. 

The Future of Canada

No matter who wins the upcoming federal election, there are things that should be considered to help us navigate the future of the country. Safe to say, we have hitched our wagon to the U.S. and it has made us very vulnerable. Trump has been very chaotic and the new prime minister will have to deal with that. The closest option for Canada was the easy one and our trade and tourism has been focused so much on the U.S. that we haven't even completed twinning highway projects to connect easy and west routes in Canada.

To be fair, twinning of Trans-Canada to Ontario is going through the planning stages now and we'll need those east-west corridors even more. However, it shows what our priorities have been. It has been those north/south road, rail routes, pipelines and airport connections all focused on the States. There have been a few projects to enhance other economic routes such as Trans-Mountain Pipeline, the railway to Churchill, Trans-Canada Highway improvements and LNG projects. 

Alberta has been focused on pipeline projects headed south but that always results in discounted oil prices. Neither Trump or Biden got pipeline projects approved. Harper didn't either. Trudeau actually got an expensive one built but probably got no benefit from it in Alberta. For that province though, it is the best paying oil pipeline the industry has. Funny, how that goes. The Trans-Mountain Pipeline has been selling higher priced oil than anything shipped through southern pipelines. Given the costs of the line, even if western pipelines were approved, it is possible companies would be hesitant due to the enormous costs. Most are shying away even though most think tanks keep saying give the private companies the freedom. Most won't commit even if all restrictions are gone. The costs of infrastructure, labour and supplies are high.

Manitoba has decided not to re-new a hydro energy deal with U.S. company Northern States Power. Part of this is to ensure the province has capacity but also for exports to western provinces and the north. With federal help, hydro can be extended all the way to Nunavut. To that end, the premiers of Manitoba and Nunavut have signed an agreement to get this work done. This is a project of national importance and sovereignty. It is a $1.6 billion project to connect five communities in the north to Manitoba Hydro. Some infrastructure would be built in Manitoba and quite a lot in Nunavut. It is no doubt one of the biggest nation building projects west of Ontario.

Most oil industry people now believe pipelines going east are now too costly. This is why the premier of Manitoba Wab Kinew has proposed a second port on the Hudson Bay to the European delegation at Port Nelson. A second port site runs more along solid ground than Churchill does and avoid beluga areas. There is more silt to dredge than at the deepwater port at Churchill. This isn't as out of the question as it sounds. Dredging is regularly done at ports around the world such as San Francisco Bay.

Alberta has demanded energy corridors across the country. In some private think tank reports they have said they believe parts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba all the way to Hudson Bay should be carved out and given to Alberta. Hard to find those reports as they were deemed so hardcore at the time and invited mockery. The premier of Alberta Danielle Smith has threatened separation if Alberta doesn't get unfettered access to build pipelines and remove oil tanker restrictions and any control over carbon. Separation movements in Alberta threaten the Smith government itself. Even when Conservatives are elected, some elements of the province want even more that can make the province seem completely unbalanced.

Alberta and Saskatchewan with so much at stake with resources have kept pretty quiet about tariffs. Alberta has worked nearly counter to every other province. Perhaps if tariffs hit their energy and other areas as hard as Ontario has been hit? A unified Canada can be strong if provinces support one another. Much of the rest of the country seems more willing now to help Alberta with their energy economy. However, the fear of oil spills, derelict infrastructure and environmental damage can't be brushed aside. Even Albertans are not likely to support a deteriorating climate of bad air, water and abandoned rigs. Losing a few communities to wild fire also hurts.

Most of the premiers, in light of what is happening in the U.S., have talked about removing restrictions on labour movement and trade within Canada. This is a discussion that has been going for decades. Ultimately, it always seems easier to keep the sausage from Saskatchewan from entering Alberta. By the way, that's a real case presently. However, if we want the guy to be the sausage king of Canada, restrictions should be lifted across the country. Realistically, if the sausage is good enough for Saskatchewan, why not Alberta. Or Manitoba?

The first ministers need to be pushed on this all the time. Most analysis on this suggests growth that might well compensate for what is being lost on U.S. trade. Ontario deserves credit for putting legislation through on this. And Nova Scotia and New Brunswick deserve credit for signing on to free trade with Ontario. The only reason Manitoba wasn't there was because it was signing the hydro deal with Nunavut.

In terms of Liquid Natural Gas, two LNG plants are about to open in B.C. This is a cleaner burning fuel and many say it is a bridge fuel to renewables. Two more plants are coming in B.C. The U.S. has none on the west coast so far. Concerns are still being raised over flaring and methane releases but reduced coal use has been the primary goal of this building. Moreover, if the money earned from this goes to renewables, it can further mitigate warming.

I think NDP, Bloc and Green party climate policies are not able to go forward without making Canada dependent on the U.S. or world for energy supply. The Bloc was remarkably assured that Trump would not cut off oil to Quebec via pipelines in the States. He kept saying he wouldn't do it which seem tonally deaf. Trump has already done huge damage to the economy of the entire world. It isn't the Bloc who would decide such a thing in Quebec but premier of Quebec. A deal could be made if environmental protections come with it. The Bloc seems intent to obstruct anything in regard to Canada.

Culturally, we have made huge strides in books, music, TV and film. In the election the various parties have some policies in this area. The arts employs a lot of people but historically, it has required support. The Sistine Chapel didn't get the ceiling painted without support. There are debates over labour tax credits but they are tied to employment rather than just cash payments that some other jurisdictions have. Those are probably most effective but the Canadian dollar value has been the biggest factor over the decades.

Arts and media groups are afraid that the Conservatives will slash and burn all arts, newspapers, networks and music. Both provincial and federal government have given financial assistance to the arts, local news and media. The loss of local news, radio, arts groups is definitely felt. It doesn't matter what someone's political background is when a community sees their radio station close or their local theatre. Perhaps there are those that don't care and pick up a weather reports from somewhere else or they get their news from Tik Tok but then it hits with something like no hockey game. And why? Because there is no radio or TV station to broadcast it. No high speed Internet to stream it. No newspaper to report on it. And eventually no hockey team because there is no ads supporting it.

It seems likely that CBC will continue for the time being. The election results don't appear to favour a majority Conservative government who have stated that English CBC would end. The Liberal promise has been to add $150 million a year. The plan for CBC Television even before the increase has been to add reporters outside the major cities. Given the loss of so many reporters from local news, this could bring some value to programming. CBC Radio remains popular across Canada for how it is different from commercial radio and for no commercials.

The drop in flights to the U.S. particularly 

In terms of agriculture, new markets and products are always important. China remains a big purchaser of Canadian goods but we are often the receiving end of tariffs. Those often come after it becomes obvious that China is dumping steel and manufacturing products to kill off Canadian industry. Playing one industry off of the other is miserable. Selling more within Canada itself is the easiest and yet it is hard for a sausage maker to sell from one province to the other. This has to change.

Innovation in agriculture in of terms environment, new products, transportation and equipment is the future of the industry. Canola and ice wine are only some of the well known innovations but all sorts of farm equipment was invented and built in Canada. Another big thing for ag in Canada could be more processing taking place, especially if U.S. goods are tariffed. 

As far as the environment, while consumer carbon pricing is gone, the need to invest in carbon capture and energy efficiencies. The talk about reducing energy cost isn't something that Canada can do for the core price. The world market sets that. However, the government can assist in making residential and businesses less exposed to how much they consume but making sure buildings are better insulated from the elements and possibly have more solar panels. Ask any RV owner how they feel about solar. They love them.

There is a demand for alternative energy. Canada is way behind on geo-thermal although it may be best way to heat homes in the far north. The country doesn't generate any electricity from it either even though other industrialized nations are doing so. In fairness Canada has a lot of hydro electric power from the various dams across the country. Still, many provinces have reached the upper limits of how much power they can generate. Even Manitoba, which four years ago said they didn't need anymore, has revised the need based on not being able to supply new industries and growing population. The need is so great that Manitoba under and NDP government will construct a fuel burning plant for energy needs.

A programs such as the 2 billion trees planted by 2030 ish is not spending its full budget nor planting enough trees. It is always a mystery why such projects take so long to get going. It has been said that if Canada really wants to do carbon capture they need to get more trees in the ground. Even conservatives cannot be comfortable with large areas of Canada burning to the ground. Still, some oil industry people seem to be asking for all environmental controls dropped.

At the moment, the new prime minister is very close to a majority and has popular support. They key for him will be get capacity in the system to help with housing affordability and to be a federal partner on infrastructure. It won't be easy as the U.S. will be unstable for the foreseeable future. And world-wide political tensions rise and fall as do military interactions. Canada will have a difficult time trying to stay peaceful and prosperous throughout this period. 

Donald Trump, Next President of the United States?

Following the Trump trial in New York, more commentators have said it won't stop Trump from running and possibly winning the next election. Canadians following along can only wonder what such turbulent times can mean. While we have no say in the end results of a U.S. election, we are sure to be affected by it. It sometimes doesn't matter if the President or Congress is Democrat or Republican as either can be tough on Canada whether it is trade or foreign policy.

We are not nearly as polarized although there are people who have hated Trudeau with all their hearts. A surge of Canadians going to live in the U.S. have cited that as a reason to real estate agents for moves to such places like Florida. It will be curious if a different prime minister hastens a return. The truth is people move for work, climate and other reasons so moves might continue regardless. Home prices in Canada have had people cashing in for retirement moves or leaving for less expensive living in the U.S.

There is a lot of anger that has built up in North America and in the U.S. in particular. A seething grievance and upset is fueled by the various silos of information catering to beliefs its audience might already have. In Canada, we have only two cable news channels which some people on the right might consider extremist left wing. There was the Sun cable news channel that tried to make a go of it but it's ratings were poor which they blamed on regulators for not making it mandatory on cable. Rebel Media has taken over the right wing voice in Canada and is probably more outspoken than it was on TV.

In the U.S. there are multiple platforms for the left wing, right wing and very little for those who report straight news. FOX news is the biggest on the right wing media front in the U.S. and fully got on board in support of Donald Trump's return to the presidency. The polarization has gotten so pronounced that the primaries were a wash and the chosen candidates pretty much decided months ago.

Joe Biden has been down in the polls for months despite evidence that the economy has bounced back. However, inflation has made people angry and upset  about the rising costs. It will take some time before prices start to feel affordable. Some stores in the U.S. are lowering prices because the market has reached a peak. Habits have changed in many cases so that people are eating earlier, looking for bargains and feeling a little disengaged from the world.

The cutting of cable wires, streaming and fewer local sources of news means more limited sources of information getting out to people. There is less tolerance for any view not already established. News sources on the left and right reinforce established views and news operations that report straight news are treated with disdain. It is hard to see how people can information when there are no agreed upon reference points or facts.

Donald Trump is largely unaffected by the court cases or what the judge says in July. He can still run and win. It is entirely possible that Republicans wins Congress as well as the Presidency. I've said it before and I will say again: Canadians should not take a U.S. election personally. The majority of us don't live there, vote there and probably won't be affected any differently than if it was a total sweep of Democrats. In fact, we have been treated more severely sometimes by Democrats.

The next election will be about mobilization and turnout. Either party has anyone less than motivated and they will likely lose. Canada can only stand back and watch. Some international players might try to influence the results both legally and illegally but Canada should be vocally neutral. It is very possible we will be baited into world debate about how secure Canada is, how unfair a trading partner we are and how we don't contribute to defence. 

Canadian politicians, journalist and citizenry should have answers to these questions and more but not to get angry nor take lightly who is saying something and what they are saying. If Trump is elected and looks to punish countries that spend less than 2% on defence, Canada must have a response. And not just the prime minister but Parliament and its leaders. 

In the past, and even with Donald Trump, Canada has managed the relationship with the U.S. as best as it can. We want the U.S. to pay attention to our issues, many of which revolve around trade, but not so much attention that we are a target of negative outcomes. It is not easy. If Trump is in power though, we should realize that we could face a sudden policy change if we don't work through other layers of power in Washington. And no, a change of government to a Conservative party will not necessarily give Canada a boost with Trump. Ask the British if they were cut any favour with Trump during a Conservative government.

It is probably best for all Canadians to prepare for the possible election of Trump as president and everything that goes with it.
 

Janet Stewart to Leave CBC News for CBC Radio Noon

Announced by Janet Stewart herself, she will be taking over CBC Radio Noon for the Majorie Dowhos who will be on maternity leave for a year. Stewart's job, which she has held since 2007, has been posted internally. Stewart has said she would still be doing anchoring from time to time but it is clear the radio job is something she has worked comfortably in over her career.

Stewart was CTV News local anchor prior to her long time position at CBC. She served in that job from 2001 to 2006. The latest ratings periods are unknown but John Sauder, the long time meteorologist at CBC, departed in retirement several weeks earlier. There have been a series of people on the anchor desk over some weeks but it is likely the position will attract interest from a variety of people both in Winnipeg and in other CBC positions in Canada. It is also possible that the job will attract outside CBC interest as well.

CTV has been the highest rated TV News locally but has been badly wounded by losing their noon, weekend and holiday newscasts.. Global and CityTV also have news divisions so there could be a shuffling of how each approaches the changes.

Anchor jobs at CBC don't come up often. CBC Radio where Stewart is heading has been number 1 for several years and has a strong news department. The time for CBC to reclaim first in local TV news will lie in a makeover for the news in people and format. It will be interesting to see what they intend on doing.

CTV Cuts 4,800 Across Canada

CTV blames the federal government for the 4,800 cuts and the loss of noon hour and weekend news shows. They received $40 million from the federal government just last year. They cited uncertainty in the regulatory system. What they wanted was to get out of the news business for the network except for Toronto while holding onto their licenses across the country. To be clear, the company is reporting hundreds of millions of profit in the last quarter and an increase in dividend for the 20th straight year.

Last year, CTV gutted their evening news broadcast and cut reporters in London, Washington, Los Angeles and in Ottawa. In Winnipeg they shuttered AM radio station 1290 which was presenting comedy and titled Funny. It was ranked last in the ratings. No radio stations lost this time in Manitoba but 45 sold across the country. More on that later on.

Now, CTV isn't the only one making cuts. CBC and Global have also cut. Newspapers as well like Toronto Star. Postmedia too which includes Winnipeg's Sun newspaper. The cuts in Winnipeg are such that they don't send a reporter to cover the Jets or Bombers when they are out of town. Is it is no wonder teams hire their own reporters now?

Some critics are saying that Bill C-11 and Bill C-18 which try to get online companies like Facebook and Google to pay into a system that supports journalism are to blame. Google will pay $100 million and Facebook has opted out and blocked Canadian media. Assuming a new Conservative government ends these bills and dissolves the the CBC and allows CTV, Global and others to drop all news in favour of U.S. programming, what will we actually have in Canada? In all likelihood, no Canadian programming at all in news, sports, music, drama, comedy or weather. 

It is highly probable that the Canadian companies would ask to be sold to U.S. or international players since their argument is their is no economic basis for anything Canadian to exist. Is Canada economically not viable? In our quest to have products from all over the world in Canada including cultural, does this mean Canada really produce anything that Canadians and the rest of the world wouldn't like?

It should be pointed out that all over the world, digital giants are changing every cultural industry. Companies are merging over and over again, often to the detriment of workers, other industries and countries themselves. Monopolies have been broken up over the decades because by their very nature they are not competitive. In some cases they are anti-democratic. There likely would not have been an Internet as we know if AT&T had not been broken up.

CTV wants out of the news business. In two years they have cut nearly 10,000 workers. If capitalism can't be part of the grand bargain of providing a public service then government has no choice but to intervene. It goes back to the point above about whether there is a business case for Canada's very existence. And if there is, what is the consensus on that?

For the government, the question is how to support journalism without it becoming state journalism? If it is radio or TV, listen to or watch it. The advertisers will support it without you having to pay for it. If you can afford it, subscribe to a newspaper or magazine. The government can support directly or indirectly. Directly, by money to media or indirectly by tax supports to advertisers to buy ads locally.

Winnipeg is lucky in that it has one of the last large independent newspapers in the country in the Free Press. They have at least one reporter travel with the Jets and the Bombers which is now unusual in Canada. Sadly, they don't have an Ottawa-based journalist now. The Winnipeg Sun makes it a two newspaper town. The city has a digital news service with ChrisD.ca. There are a number of ethnic newspapers. CJOB remains largely a news, sports and information station. CBC Radio and Television have fair sized newsrooms. CTV has quite a few reporters in Winnipeg although they no longer cover sports or have a national correspondent. Global and City have smaller units but do their part on covering the city. And let's not forget the APTN News team based in Winnipeg. The Athletic has a Winnipeg-based NHL reporter.

The podcasts from sports to news such as Illegal Curve, Hustler's Winnipeg Sportscast, The Great Canadian Talk Show are covering Winnipeg in detail. All of those reporters once worked in radio in Winnipeg. There are a few music podcasts as well. And Tik Tok has a few influencers out there who cover things in the city.

However, where do young people get their news? When it comes to local stuff, it seems probably Tik Tok. Or other social media such as Discord, Telegram, Instagram or many others. Those social media sites can be hit and miss and for those that do have news in them, they probably source it from other news gatherers and only do a little research themselves on it or express an opinion on it. While this is useful and interesting, it may put you in algorithm that reinforces that point of view.  It is hard to know what is true since deep fakes in music, politics seem to be first tested out on social media. And now AI has got everyone scared since it can cause outright harm equivalent to shouting fire in a crowded movie theatre.

CTV's cuts hurt when the level of talent, loss of regional and international correspondents and variety of areas journalists cover is taken into consideration. I like a number of choices for news and information. But how do we ensure Canadian voices get heard and how do you monetize it? Most of the industrialized nations have some form of public broadcasting support. Even NPR and PBS in the U.S. receive over a billion in direct federal support through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The support rises if the 100% tax-free savings donors get from their donations by the U.S. government is counted. Even Manitobans donating to Prairie Public (Manitoba) receive a tax deduction although many other jurisdictions of Canada have lost that ability. About 1/4 of Prairie Public's budget comes from Manitoba. 

The Conservatives under Pierre Poilievre have said they want to end the CBC. They haven't indicated if they support a PBS Canada model either. If they end all public support for CBC, for news of any kind, it is possible we see most if not all radio and TV collapse in Canada? In comparison to 20 other industrial countries, Canada ranks near the bottom for public broadcasting as well as cultural spending. Ending public broadcasting would put Canada below the U.S. is spending.

This could politically backfire for the Conservatives if Canadian media groups become absorbed by U.S. or international interests who might not want to spend money on hockey broadcasts or Canadian Olympic coverage. This isn't a wildly speculative thought. If Bell Media is angling to be sold outside of Canada decisions will be made outside of Canada. ABC/ESPN and Turner  do not cover as much of hockey as Canadian channels do. What happens when there are no Canadian channels? I can't imagine that would be too popular in Canada. 

Bell Media and CTV have to figure out how to turn things around. Becoming a pure play streaming company to escape Canadian regulation seems doubtful if even big companies like Paramount can't make money at it. Seems radio and TV and cable are more profitable by far. And Bell Media knows this because they keep increasing the dividend each year.

John Sauder Retires from CBC Broadcasting

For nearly 40 years John Sauder has been a broadcasting legend in Winnipeg. For many, his introduction came as Captain John in the KY 58 traffic reports from 1984 to 1994 from his Cessna. Pretty much every other radio station would listen in and use his information in their own traffic reports. As Sauder tells it, he didn't know he would be the one making the radio reports. He had thought he'd be just flying.

It is worth noting that when budget cuts ended the air traffic reports, there were no air reports for many years. Most cities in Canada, if they do have air traffic reports, use a company that that flies helicopters and supplies the report. I don't believe we have had that in place for a number of years now.

Sauder's personality came out in his reports and they were by far the most accurate and up to date reports on car traffic in the city. Think it made people think we were now big enough to have these type of reports. We'd all seen the chopper reports from the U.S. and although we didn't really have highways in the city, any tips to avoid the trains was more than welcome.

The end of air traffic reports must have left Sauder not knowing what to do next but he ended up at CKY doing weather reports for a number of years and that became permanent full time in 2000. He also got his meteorology credentials which cemented his reputation for forecasts.

It was in 2007, after so many years of radio and TV broadcasting at CKY/CTV, he went to CBC and it is there after 39 years he announced his retirement in 2024. Not entirely sure who is replacement is or if there will be one. Newscasts in Canada are almost all going to one anchor only. They have dropped their second anchors, sportcaster and in many cases weather reporter.

Say what you will about U.S. local broadcasts but they generally have two anchors, a dedicated sports reporter and often a meteorologist. U.S. stations take weather forecasting seriously. We don't seem to have nearly the trained broadcasters in this area as would seem warranted. One would hope that we have not seen the last meteorologist to work in broadcasting in Winnipeg.

John Sauder was dedicated local broadcaster who took his specialty roles seriously whether it was traffic or weather and he attained the credentials to do the work  while being personable and community minded. He will be missed on the air.

Pierre Poilevere To End CBC If Elected

By Manning Centre c/o: Jake Wright - Flickr, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32870907

The leader of the Official Opposition has made it is mission to defund the CBC. For his base supporters, this has been an objective for decades. In actuality, he wants to defund English CBC while keeping Radio-Canada which would require a change to the Broadcast Act. And likely an explanation why Canadian taxpayers should support one over the other.

The defund the CBC platform is right on the Conservative website. But why not Radio-Canada in Quebec? The answer is votes in Quebec. The Conservatives need to find votes there or some way to win a majority. The big question is whether Quebecers will believe that Conservatives would actually stop defunding at English CBC and not continue to gut the whole corporation.

Outside of the Conservative party, it is unclear whether is support for ending CBC. In recent weeks, Poilevere has been trying get Twitter to classify CBC, among others, as government funded. He succeeded in doing so and says this is evidence of the network being a propaganda arm of the Trudeau government. This is an accusation he has made against all forms of media in Canada for twenty years. It is a dubious accusation because he has never able to show marching orders coming from the Liberal government to slant stories. His argument is that it is self evident which requires no proof. This may be adequate for the base but to win an election on this will require a little more substance.

People will want to know what actually happens if the CBC is actually closed. Does it include radio? Does it include northern Canada? Will assets be sold to the private sector? Will Hockey Night in Canada have less of a reach in the country where some places won't be able to get it without difficulty? Will government support also be dropped for other print, radio and TV. Will Canadian content guidelines and ownership rules be eliminated?

One question leads to another and even some who might be allies ideologically with the Conservatives might come to realize implications beyond a victory of seeing the CBC ended. The big companies that own the media, including the Sun and Postmedia, also receive money from the government. Ending the CBC doesn't necessarily help if it ends their supports too. And if their supports remain, the base of the Tory party might ask why. Quite simply, the Conservatives will have to explain why they pick winners and losers for support. Keep in mind the Winnipeg Free Press, Winnipeg Sun and all the private stations including CJOB receive some sort of government money, protection or support. Does everyone get cut off? And if they do and news rooms shut down around the country, does this serve the nation well?

As for cozying up to Elon Musk and Twitter, it seems seeking legitimacy in someone who receives government money for Tesla as well as SpaceX while devaluing his overpaid asset in Twitter, is shortsighted. I left Twitter some time ago. I'm not sure what the future is there and who knows if anything will survive AI. Even Elon Musk is afraid of AI because the veracity of real human beings on the site is near impossible. A blue check make might not keep AI from flooding a site like Twitter with inhuman conversations.

But back to CBC. it seems to generate the same hatred in the far right that Trudeau does. It is a deep and ferocious anger that is slightly deranged which is ironic because that is what they often accuse the left of in terms political leaders on the right. One wonders what happens if they truly get their wish and end CBC's existence if that will make them happy. Or will they be like the dog chasing bumpers finally catching one and then not knowing what to do with themselves after as in the case of conservatives defeating Roe v Wade in the U.S.

In the case of the U.S, some Republican are wondering now that they have achieved their goal on abortion, how do they win elections after if the feeling is that they are the wrong side of how Americans actually think? For Conservatives in Canada, if they achieve a majority and end the CBC, do they find that the decision produces another majority or makes them a one term government? Do they care? I suppose they should because as demonstrated by south of the border, elections have consequences. And if your record is one of competent governance, fighting culture battles seems a waste of time and energy.

The $1.2 billion in government funds and the $500 million of commercial revenues helps run a coast to coast to coast network. Eliminating English CBC means that Radio-Canada won't have source material to provide nation-wide information in Quebec. Presently, no other network does that. And in the north, will resources still be left if place there for non-English and French programming? Or do they only get information from the south...in non-native languages? 

If Conservatives become the government, actual legislation has to be introduced to indicate what the plan is. Will the network be sold? Will assets be sold? Will the government allow international players to come in buy CBC, other Canadian networks? Will they eliminate Canadian content regulations? Will they eliminate Canadian ownership rules? It is can of worms where the outcome is unknown. Will it end up with U.S. owned media that eliminates all news in Canada and even hockey coverage because there is no mandate to produce content made in Canada?

While it might appear to be controversial bringing attention to this policy of Pierre Poilevere, it is something that he brings up in every speech. Not Ukraine, but this. He wants his policy to be known and in the absence of a defined way a Conservative government achieves this, we can envision almost anything. It is no wonder that Conservative MPS in Quebec don't want to say anything on this. They are literally hiding under their desks as Radio-Canada remains popular in Quebec. Even if this branch of CBC is preserved, questions about what changes to the Broadcast act and budget will invariably have to be discussed. 

It is possible the Conservatives believe they lost the last elections, including the one when Harper was prime minister, because of the CBC and the media. His supporters seems to think so and it isn't likely anyone can convince them otherwise. It is not much different than Republicans believing the election results were altered and instigating an insurrection. This belief that media is for the left flies in the face of print media across Canada endorsing Conservatives pretty much across the board. As for TV, they don't do editorial endorsement and every news show have Conservatives on their panels to explain policy.

Sadly, many government and opposition parties are frequently avoiding media and are more reluctant to share any information or take questions. Case in point is Joe Biden has down fewer news conferences than Ronald Reagan. This is deliberate on his part. Canada's House of Commons makes it more difficult to hide from questions. However, Question Period is a poor format for information and is more about talking points. It is why journalism can be so effective. It is this journalism that Poilevere depended on this week to reveal Prime Minister Trudeau's visit to Jamaica to a billionaire's house.

Poilevere reaching out to Twitter feels childish and angry. Elon Musk is pushing all the buttons there while the adults in business are heading for the doors. There has to be some serious concern with Conservatives being a freaking train wreck firing Bank of Canada Governor, ending the CBC and ending all the carbon taxes in the first 100 days and watching some serious responses. Not all of it will come from Canada. Much of it will come from world markets. 

It isn't entirely clear that Poilevere can pivot from Opposition to Government. His permanent campaign of anger and accusation that nothing is working means his approach might be a bull in china shop. It also doesn't bode well for letting his cabinet operate independently. It could very well be him in the Prime Minister's Office not telling anyone what he is doing akin to Brian Pallister. Except, you can expect it to be more of a disaster than a premier ditching WWII ceremonies to go on a tour of Europe and visit businesses without their staff.

If the Conservatives expect to win the next election, they need to look less unhinged. They really don't appear to be able to show they are competent enough to take over for a government that walks into rakes all too regularly. It doesn't look great that they walk into rakes just as much.

CBC's Ismaila Alfa to Host Toronto's Metro Morning

The plum jobs for local radio broadcasting are morning slots in both private and public stations. While there are very good afternoon and evening broadcasts, if a radio station doesn't have its act together in the morning it will suffer the rest of the day.

Two radio hosts came on board in 2013. Marcy Markusa became host of Information Radio and Ismaila Alfa became host of Up to Speed. They had plenty of time to know the Portage Avenue studios of the radio station since they had been working for years there already making the 990/89.3 the top station in the city.

It was not easy. Nearly two decades earlier, CBC Radio was middle to lower end of the ratings. While there was excellence in programming, it was hard to shake the music-only habits of many listeners.

There is much that can wrong trying to come up with the right hosts for radio stations. First you want to build an audience. Get too impatient on that and make changes and it is like not waiting for talent on a hockey team take leadership.

By the time Markusa and Alfa came on board, they were able to slide into chairs with teams that would go into the corners for them. Ratings have been solid. However, morning shows are still everyone's key to success. But what do you do with two hosts that came on in the same year? In radio, you wait for a golden opportunity.

Sometimes that doesn't come in your market. Matt Galloway, the longtime and beloved host of Toronto's Metro Morning was bumped up to CBC's The Current, the national broadcaster's big joint in the AM. This left a huge hole top fill because the morning radio gig can turn into a decade or longer job.

Markusa, a lifelong Winnipegger has her dream job. But Alfa, by way of Nigeria, Edmonton and then Winnipeg must have been thinking: Morning jobs don't come up too often. Is Toronto the right fit? Given his musical background, genial disposition and advocacy, Alfa probably thought how exciting it might be to explore Toronto.

Auditions happened with some of the biggest names in TV and Radio CBC land and today Alfa announce he was taking on the spot at Metro Morning.  It is quite possible we'll still hear Alfa from time to time nationally. That's how it goes with CBC. You are fill in host for holidays and such so don't be surprised to hear Alfa on Q or The Current in years to come.

Winnipeg's loss is Toronto's gain. There are a list of people who might be good in the Up to Speed slot. I think CBC Manitoba has their eyes on someone already but they are likely letting some auditions take place before they announce.

It doesn't hurt to have CBC Manitoba people in the Big Smoke. In recent years they are often the first to correct Toronto born and bred types about Winnipeg and have zero tolerance for nabobs of ignorance.

Congratulations to Alfa. There is a reason why Winnipggers land top jobs. They are usually well rounded because they learn their craft with skilled people who take pride in what they do.

Gord Leclerc Laid Off from CTV News Winnipeg

At one time CBC News in Winnipeg was number 1. CKY and later CKND and much later than that MTN were way behind in the ratings. Garth Dawley read the news from 1970 to 1983 and CBC was solidly in front. In 1983, CBC enhanced that success with the changes both nationally and locally. The National and The Journal had moved to 10 PM and the Winnipeg 24 Hours supertime broadcast had Sandra Lewis in 1985 and Kevin Evans in a solid combination that dominated the 1980s news. Often full length 24 Hours documentaries from Winnipeg would headline The Journal. The product being produced was that good.

CBC would tinker with the format nearly non-stop from 1990 to 2000 due to cutbacks or news format changes such as the Canada Now experiment that tried to place a national news broadcast at the supper hour. That experiment extended to the national news moving to 9 PM with poor results till it moved back to 10 PM.

Sandra Lewis would move on and the news in Winnipeg would be anchored by Diana Swain from 1995 to 2000 with some maternity leave breaks in there as well. It was around 2000 when Swain left that the local news in Winnipeg switched. It was no longer number 1 in the market. They stuck it long term with some familiar faces that were not headed off to Toronto like Lewis and Swain. It was a bit of a revolving door after that. Krista Erikison and Jennifer Rattray along with some fill in anchors for seven years with multiple format changes with Canada Now.

Meanwhile, CKY stuck to its knitting. They brought a reporter called Gord Leclerc in 1995 and in 2002 he became the news anchor. The one format remained intact and they allowed for community personalities to evolve. Sylvia Kuzyk in weather gave a sense of continuity. Janet Stewart as Leclerc's co-anchor and John Sauder would add to 6:00 PM lock on number 1 for CTV News.

In a uprising change though, Janet Stewart left CTV tin 2006 to anchor CBC News at Six in January of 2007. She would not make the move alone, John Sauder who had also been at CTV since 2000 would also join the CBC broadcast team in 2007. Sauder was a well known commodity for Winnipeg for being the pilot and traffic reporter for Winnipeg from 1984 and flying at "Captain John" for decades. Alas, Stewart and Sauder were not able to break the stranglehold CTV had on 6 PM news. However, you could say that a partnership was more solidly worked out with the radio division using TV news people that has helped CBC Radio One achieve number 1 status in Winnipeg and across the country.

Leclerc at CTV would be eventually joined by Maralee Caruso in 2007. Caruso was a veteran of the newsroom since 2001. Together, the two anchors continued CTV News at Six dominance despite the efforts of CBC to re-take lead with Stewart and Sauder.

In 2019, CTV News in Winnipeg unceremoniously dumped Gord Leclerc and wiped him from website. It was described purely a budgetary matter. All of the past years has seen CTV cutting staff. They're not the only ones. CBC across the country wielded the hatchet this week, mostly in Toronto.

After nearly 25 years, Leclerc was erased from the news. Were it not for his industry friends, it is likely no one would have known the day it happened. Not even an acknowledgement the broadcast took place. Maralee Caruso continues to be solo anchor but it must have caused a chill for all of CTV Winnipeg. The rumour has been that the network has been interested in maybe cutting even more.

The years of community engagement and charity work counted for nothing. And while it is a business, it is a pretty cruel one. The chasing of ratings and advertising money has meant people come and go. However, it is worth noting that Leclerc helped them achieve and maintain number 1 in the market. The very stability and consistency that made CTV number 1 might tip the tables back in favour of the CBC News at Six program.

Can a job offer from other media in Winnipeg for Leclerc be in the offing? Or will all those years of community engagement bring other job offers.

Still, if CBC really wanted to stick CTV in the high, they would hire Gord Leclerc.

TSN Radio To Broadcast Manitoba Moose Games

TSN 1290 is already a powerhouse in local sports broadcasting and will continue to be so with the addition of the Winnipeg Jets' AHL affiliate , the Manitoba Moose, to their radio roster. It was announced earlier that former CBC sports broadcaster Mitch Peacock would be doing the play by play for the Manitoba Moose but no word on what radio station. Now we know.

The addition of the Manitoba Moose to TSN's radio broadcast means that almost every night of the week will feature hockey in Winnipeg. Mitch Peacock adds incredible strength to the station and it is not hard to imagine the cross guesting that will happen over all the hockey coverage.

Peacock was with CBC Winnipeg six years and is an experienced play by play broadcaster. Given the loss of the hockey at CBC and the shortened news at the station to one hour, it must have been appealing to jump to a place where sports rules 24 hours a day.

TSN Sports Radio has been locking down all the sports writing and broadcasting talent in Winnipeg. Gary Lawless from the Free Press made the jump and now Mitch Peacock had done so as well. In short, the amount of local coverage and employees TSN has in Winnipeg is large.

The first broadcast of the season starts this Friday against the Toronto Marlies. Expect to hear more about the broadcast and format in the next days

Corydon and Stafford Swiss Chalet/Harvey's Drive Thru

Larger Harvey's/Swiss Chalet Drive Thru Toronto

Missed it when it was mentioned in the Free Press in October. At that time, it was indicated that the only thing that was holding up the development of the old Chicken Delight location at Stafford and Corydon was the wait for an additional franchisee to share the corner

It was well known that Harvey's had won the right to build a drive thru at the corner that had held a Chicken Delight since 1981. In a controversial decision, a drive thru was allowed to continue. It was felt that some attempt had been made to hide the fact to the owners and developers that a drive thru was grandfathered in to the neighbourhood plan.

A majority of city councillors felt this created unfair circumstances and awarded the Harvey's a winning bid for the decaying Chicken Delight property. Some additional zoning improvements were added and the developer was given the go to proceed to construction stage.

Months and months have gone by and aside from a mid fall update that appeared in the Free Press, nothing seemed to be happening.

Well now, according to the CBC, the additional franchisee has come aboard and we should soon see at the corner a Swiss Chalet/Harvey's Drive Thru.

This is not the first time we have had the combo in Winnipeg. Swiss Chalet/Harvey's operated out of the old Winnipeg International Airport for many years. The move to the new terminal left the city with neither restaurant until Swiss Chalet opened on Kenaston and Harvey's opened on Portage Avenue.

Given this city's love of Swiss Chalet as evidenced by the packed parking lot on Kenaston, it is interesting that it took this long to get another one.

Corydon is at that uncomfortable time where residential and commercial development is increasing how busy the area is. There are legitimate concerns about traffic, noise and the like. They should be addressed but not to the point of driving people and business away from the area.

Osborne Village has gone through challenges throughout its development. While some have reacted with disdain for Second Cup, Starbucks and American Apparel coming, the truth is those businesses have helped anchor certain blocks and enticing people to local fare all throughout the Village.

The upset over Safeway and Shopper's expansion was legitimate but overwrought. The Safeway that emerged from the planning process is a lynchpin of success for the Village. Likewise, the Shopper's may have displaced a DVD rental store and restaurant but it also improved the corner's face out to Osborne as well as offer expanded services. And yes, a 24 hour pharmacy is needed in a  city Winnipeg's size.

And what of the Corydon Village?

It looks like development resistance has reached a prickly time.

There may be anger over a Harvey's/Swiss Chalet at the corner of Stafford and Corydon by some but it was a drive thru for 30 years and the neighbourhood didn't fall apart. It is likely the restaurants will be welcomed by many who live in the area.

I think pushing for improvements to the area planning are worthwhile and with luck and care, Corydon can continue to be one of the more desirable areas of the city.

Money and Public Officials

The controversy over public officials (both elected and unelected) in regards to money and privilege is an old story but a good one. There has been some piling on and some defending of the various offences. This is par for the course.

Politicians and public officials are custodians of taxpayer's money. Scrutiny should be expected.

The Canadian Taxpayer's Federation placed in its crosshairs the president of a local college. It is amazing what a freedom of information request can turn up. One Free Press columnist has said that the president should have known better in terms of the optics of buying golf shoes and expensing it. However, the same columnist also said that the CTF should have used journalistic efforts and asked for a response from the president.

My understanding is that the CTF asked the Red River Board for a response as they published. Does that count? Or does the response have to come before publishing?

The reason I ask is that the Free Press had an explosive story on privilege involving loading dock parking and the city's top official. It was revealed that he was not available for an interview and the story went ahead. Should the Free Press have waited? If there had been a response, would the story have been killed?

The Free Press sent a photographer to have picture evidence of the parking incident in February of this year. However, if you go back to June of 2012:

Who is this in June of 2012?

There is a pic there of a car and driver there that I thought was a certain city official.

I am not a journalist nor have the resources of one. I do call people asking for a response and in some cases I get one but I have also been brushed aside a lot times and in some cases outright lied to as revealed in documents received in someone else's freedom of information request. No hard feelings. I try but I don't have any power other than to write. I do care about accuracy and anyone who has read what I have written knows I try to be fair.

I do have an opinion about things and will continue to state it. I thought about publishing that parking picture when I saw it but I thought that the Free Press or CBC would have surely asked the question: Where are the mayor and councillors parking now that the Civic Parkade is closed? It took a while but the story came out.

I was on the phone many a time before the fire hall story came out trying to find out the disposition of the buildings. The real estate department probably got sick of hearing from me but it was where I first heard of the land swap. I didn't publish because I still didn't have all the pieces. And I may never gotten all the information because I am not a journalist.

It is tough being a journalist. I expect this is routine for them in trying to get information and not having access to it or being spun a tale or lied to. I have a lot of respect for the Free Press among other media in the city. This weekend alone I saw a great analysis of first round draft picks of the Winnipeg Jets compared to the rest of the league. In the same paper was terrific work on school division budgets. All that work came from a professional staff with intimate knowledge of the subject, good research and passion.

I know those stories came about because there was a dedicated professional staff writing and having experience and the power of their publication to get the information out.

There is a debate on Twitter about quality and circulation of print news.

Our family buys the Free Press and I pick up the Globe and Mail nearly every Saturday. The Sun and the Metro come free and in bulk to my work every day. I receive Maclean's every week and pick up a few magazines every month. I like quality and pay for it.

I know some people don't pay for content. They probably never will if they never have to.

But let's get back to whether the Canadian Taxpayer's Federation should have to wait for a response before publishing...

I think the answer is no. I don't consider the CTF to be a media group. They are an activist lobby group. They have asked for a response from Red River but I would no less expect them to wait to publish that I would have when Nick Ternette finally got the RCMP and CSIS security files on him after all those years.

The CTF and the late Nick Ternette made public their findings. They left the media to ask the questions.

The Free Press along with the rest of the news media have probably sold a lot of papers and got a lot of viewers and listeners as a result. There has been a lot of debate about what is fair and what is not for public officials in terms of money.

This is good.

Public officials should have their expenses vetted and then published. Government advertising should be vetted for political bias. Slush funds at all levels of government should be revealed and stomped on.

The elected and unelected officials ought not to worry about the information being out there or checked before approval. It makes for better governance. If the CTF wishes to make hay of some of those items, let them. I think the public is smart enough to know when criticism is warranted and unwarranted.

And if activists do make claims and publish them, the media should use their resources and staff to flesh out the story. Ask the tough questions and later in opinion pieces, come up with thoughts on the whole thing.

Last week was a good week for the media. News can break in many ways and this is one of them.

It is not for me to see how the media can monetize its product better. However, lobby groups, pollsters, activists and bloggers can be a good source of content for a professional journalist.

Ellice Liquor Store

Ellice Liquor Store

Ellice Liquor Across from Centrepoint

The schism between urban and suburban has been growing for many years now. Politically, culturally and economically the differences are becoming easier to see and harder to reconcile.

The war between urban and suburban is played out in the anonymous comment section of the Free Press and CBC every day. A lot of those comments have to be tossed because they amount to personal attacks or cross into intolerance based on any number of factors.

In addition, the limited amount of characters of Twitter are ideal for snark and it is generally easy to heckle and be boorish when done anonymously.

What is generally seen in regards to suburban commentary on urban areas is that people there are all scumbags and criminals. The urban commentary generally runs along the lines that suburban people are selfish users and takers.

Thoughtful commentary is often shunned for one liners.

The fact of the matter is that if a city is to function well, all of it has be to considered not just one tiny corner of it. The solution isn't to just keep fleeing farther and farther till the city reaches provincial borders. Nor is the solution to bulldoze large swaths of the city to create some sort of doughnut hole.

That is not to say that some bulldozing can't, shouldn't and won't happen. While some mourn the loss of the Wagon Wheel restaurant, the objective of a higher density mixed use land covering almost one block is excellent. The fact of the matter is the block in question has been under utilized the last decades despite some private efforts, specifically when it comes to the hotel/A&B Sound/MTS Exhibition Hall.

Long standing businesses shut down such Discreet Boutique or moved like Wild Planet. The complaint of their owners and those of Kraut King about aggressive street life was that it was driving them out. Happy to report that the former Kraut King location at 295 Garry Street is impressing as the Famena's Famous Roti/Curry and even out of town guests are writing glowing reviews.

But look what is just down the street from Famena's...

Famena's Famous Roti-Curry

The Garrick Hotel's clients are generally on the sidewalk out front most likely as a result of the smoking laws.

This little block seems to struggle. Sonar Night Club shut down and is now a gay club called Fame. Aqua Books shut down. A few storefronts remain stubbornly vacant.

Connection to Garrick? Think many would say it is.

For this reason, CentreVenture has been on a crusade to rid the downtown of small drinking establishment based out of hotels. They have bought a few over the years and that process has accelerated with the construction around the Winnipeg Convention Centre.

I have no problem with confronting drinking establishments that cause trouble. If you have murders inside or outside the establishment, chances are you need to look at how things are run. And it doesn't have to be down and out dive bars. It could be nightclubs that attract a bad element along with its regular crowd. It could be hotels, it could be sports facilities.

Public drunkenness and aggressive panhandling can't be ignored and there does seem to be more patrols on the street to address this issue. However, the police in the city have been lukewarm on community work and still favour cruiser cars.

This is what one retired city cop had to say:

The problem was, general patrol (the officers in cars), considered the ownership officers glorified social workers and would not only avoid having anything to do with them, but would resist helping out when transportation of a drunk was needed, or the transportation of an arrested person or just any kind of assistance.

Was it just me who felt this? No. When we got together, all 20 of us had occasion to run into resistance from our sergeants and from general patrol (there were a few exceptions)

At the end of the day, crime and the perception that downtown is unsafe will die down if the police foot patrol is constantly there, always watching, always ready to stop a crime, move a drunk to the tanks, arrest an assailant.

That is pretty harsh stuff. Officer needs assistance being ignored due to the fact they think he is a social worker?

The work has been handed over to cadets as kind of a way to earn your stripes to police constable and a car. And perhaps this is the cheaper way to do it. Still, you wonder if there is strong value in having ground coverage for problem areas by the Winnipeg Police Service itself in a meaningful way.

Serious questions are mounting about the costs of policing and the promises that crime will drop for every 50 officers hired.

The amount of overtime, ticket quotas and higher crime respective to the rest of the country gives people pause. I am no expert in policing but hearing some officers say they didn't feel supported seems to indicate a conflict inside the organization.

Which brings us back to the Ellice Liquor Store. Is this store the source of problems in the area? And by this I mean: Is the store itself a source of public drunkenness and panhandling?

I can't answer that. I don't know. I won't go into the greater issues of alcohol, poverty and homelessness. My question is more specific: is this store the cause of trouble surrounding the area or it is a mere inconvenience for a nice new development across the street?

If the answer is yes, the store is the source of problems...is the first answer not to serve intoxicated customers, patrol the parking lot and seek assistance from police in ensuring public security?

The Ellice Liquor Store, celebrated in song by a ska group in the last years along with the Royal Albert Hotel, has a small parking lot that seems to serve downtown commuters intent on quick service. This cannot be fulfilled by Cityplace with a mall location. Likewise, there are many apartments and condos going up in the area who probably might find things like a local liquor store convenient.

It is a fine balancing act that CentreVenture does but it is worth remembering that Osborne Village has had its share of ups and downs but the liquor mart was not driven out. The client base changed over the years and the location there reveals a full realized neighbourhood with grocery, drug marts and liquor store for the community.

Centrepoint under construction. Liquor just north

Kudos to the Longboat and Artis for their investment across from the MTS Centre. The offices of Stantec Engineering, the Alt Hotel, Glasshouse Condos, parkade and restaurants Milestone's and Chino Libre are going to be the biggest thing to hit Portage Avenue in decades.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves by clearing out places like the Ellice Liquor Store before seeing how one development interacts with established businesses.

Downtown Winnipeg will be won over one block at a time. Some of it will be organic such as Famena's carving out a home on Garry Street. Other times, it will be a development like Centrepoint transforming a larger area.  Let's give it all careful consideration as we proceed. But while we do it, let's make sure we have the people on the ground to ensure security and civility.

What makes you feel safer, a police car headed west down Portage Avenue or two patrols walking down the street? If the answer is the latter, should that not be what we are doing more of?

The Cityplace Casino

CityPlace with MTS Centre at Right.

CityPlace with Walkway to MTS Centre. Photo by Bryan Scott.

CityPlace

CityPlace was Winnipeg's first downtown mall built in 1979. It emerged from the ashes of the closure of Eaton's catalogue division in 1977 and initially was called Eaton Place.

It would be wrong to say it was not a success at the start. It was. The mall and office portion of the building were a going concern and Eaton's beside it did well.

The opening of several more malls all in a matter of years including Portage Place had an impact on shopping everywhere. However, the writing was on the wall and with the movement of multiplex movie theatres to the suburbs, the younger crowd that inhabited the mall left as well.

In 2001, Eaton's closed for good and it is a wonder we didn't see Eaton Place go as well. However, the newly re-branded Cityplace had the income from its offices to sustain it as well as generous revenue from the parkade and parking lots. The building has increased in value in every decade since it has been open unlike Portage Place.

The mall is a shadow of itself now. The connection to the MTS Centre built in 2004 did not help the mall in a meaningful way other than ensure that the restaurants still had people to come to them. The extended walkway in 2010 also helped in that regard as people from the Winnipeg Convention Centre came over to use restaurants.

The mall continued to serve a very niche local business area but it was not a destination mall nor did it have a huge retail anchor. The prospects for Cityplace all changed when the Winnipeg Jets returned last year.

While the Manitoba Moose were appreciated, they drew a smaller crowd, more of a family crowd and one with a more limited budget.

The arrival of the Jets and some rushed renovations to upgrade from True North drew a commitment from the province of Manitoba for further investment in the MTS Centre in the form of video lottery terminals. At present, those VLTs are in the Tavern United across the street with revenue going to pay off the arena.

Public support from the city and the province will rise to $11 million a year with all the revenue from tax discounts and VLTs added in. I don't know the economics of this. I have to suspect that the province makes a lot of money back on sales tax for liquor and merchandise sales, food and for parking. The city has fewer revenue streams but if the property values around the MTS Centre have risen, it may be worth the investment.

The fact that Longboat and Artis are building a large complex across from the MTS Centre indicates that the investment in MTS Centre is paying off. By my reckoning, the increased tax from off site might well make up for the discount the arena gets. However, I am not a accountant so I can only guess. It would be nice if someone actually did an economic impact study of the subsidy and how it affects government and business for Winnipeg and the province.

Back to the casino though...

I have long advocated a return of a casino to the downtown. I had said it would be a great way to get the Winnipeg Convention Centre the expansion they wanted. In the end though, the three levels of government stepped up and work is being down now.

All that was left was to fulfill the promise the NDP government made to True North about more VLTS to pay for improvements to the arena. The rumour had been that a sports bar was coming and the talk was the Shark Club, a sports chain in every western province except Winnipeg. But wait, we have a Shark Club. Doh, wrong club!

Like the problems we faced with Calgary's Cowboys coming to town, someone has registered and is using the Shark Club name on Lombard. If the Shark Club wanted to come here and use their name, they would likely have to make a deal with the Winnipeg club using the name these last years. Ask the The Brick how they feel that worked out for them when they sued Brick's Fine Furniture.

We finally know some of the details about what the province is planning. We are not just going to see the Tavern United's VLTs combined with new VLTs in a new restaurant. We are going to see a full restaurant and casino with 140 slot machines, 2 poker tables and 4 blackjack tables.

Holy big difference from VLTs, batman!

Some local bloggers have indicated there are a strong gains that can be made to the facility that holds a casino. We can expect this is going to trigger a property value increase as well as help elevate the value of all surrounding property in 2013 and beyond.

Some of the negative comments from bloggers and people posting to Free Press and CBC pages is in regards to gambling.

No argument there. Still, prohibition comes with ill effects too.

Would eliminating gambling and drinking cause more crime than regulating and taxing said vices? I think there is strong evidence to support that it does.

The provinces online gambling site is now love today. I think that might have a bigger impact than the casino.

As more details come available, we will see what the name will be, what the look will be and how the casino will be in relationship to the MTS Centre.

My view is that there is more good in this decision than bad. It will be interesting if in later years what the Jet Effect will actually be.